Unexpected Things
by jhenrhi.ida
Summary: When two Sith Warriors survive a 4000 year stint in carbonite, both Nathrrya and Tara have to learn the rules in a galaxy that is so much different and yet exactly the same. Between the things they lost and the rapid flow of their gains they have to be smart about what the Living Force wants them to do. [Updated 26.07.2018]
1. 01 Dreamscape

Somewhere in the galaxy two Sith warriors sat together with their backs against one another. The space around them was barren and grey with rocks and boulders of various sizes strewn about in no particular order bit the scenery seemed very unnatural to the two women. Dotted along the landscape were a few dead looking trees. The younger of the two women squinted her eyes against a light that was not shining from any sun or moon, more puzzlement for her.

"This makes no sense… we've gone over this dozens of times and nothing fits to where we are."

The elder of the two stared off into the vast emptiness before her. The woman's shoulder length deep flame red hair was tucked behind her ears and her pale blue eyes were staring ahead at the desolate environment. She too had come up with just as many explanations than her companion had and they were all equally worthless in their current predicament.

"I'd just like to figure out how we went from being in the Throne room of Zakuul to being here without knowing."

"Trust me, Tara, I know."

Nathrrya Therin-Palatine stared out into the darkness in front of her as she felt the agitation radiating off of her unofficial apprentice. Tara, though, was more of a daughter to the woman, who was in her early forties. She didn't look her age and she held an agility and had an air of high status. She wore black and charcoal grey robes with gold embellishments and highlights which held the prominent crest of House Palatine, the most prestigious estate she would inherit from her parents.

The Sith have a thing about bloodlines, Nathrrya was no ordinary Sith and her bloodline was most unique. Her mother was a Palatine and thus had one of the finest and oldest bloodlines in the Empire and it could be traced back to the Sith genocide and great exodus which occurred over a thousand years prior. Her father, by comparison, was a Therin and his lineage was that of Jedi and just as old from the Republic standpoint.

K'natara Synge, affectionately called Tara by those who knew her well enough, was a younger woman in her early twenties. With deep ebony hair, piercing dark blue eyes and a fair complexion that looked almost ghostly white, she was beautiful when compared to the average woman and in her earlier years she used that for some unsavoury reasons. Eventually getting married, though at a relatively young age, seems to have settled her wild nature.

Tara's own lineage was interesting and unique in its own way. Her father, Captain Malavai Quinn, had a pre-started family unexpected with a junior naval officer when he was still coming through ranks at the Academy on Dromund Kaas. His first child, Jaena, grew up on the planet with her mother and eventually made it into the Academy as an agent for the Empire. She went on to be the best one they had. Quinn couldn't be more proud. But he made the mistake of being seduced by another Sith Lord while he was stationed on Balmorra. Without knowing, Tara had been conceived and born from the womb of one of the most volatile Sith that walked the galaxy at the time - Darth Nox.

Needless to say, Tara's childhood was rough and she was moved around from one person to the next. She was dropped off on Quinn when she was five until he couldn't handle her growing power with the Force. She ended up on the Sith homeworld of Korriban for training and barely made it to her fifteenth year. She hopped over to her mother's department on Dromund Kaas and from there somehow managed to end up pregnant and resigning from being Sith and picking up a quarterstaff as a Mandalorian. If anything, Tara's life was hectic and dramatic and rather unfortunate when brought into retrospect by the older woman.

"This isn't the first time we've shared a dreamscape," Tara mentioned offhandedly. "Could this be something induced? I remember getting hit by a Force wave but nothing after that."

"I truthfully can't say what happened," Nathrrya said. "But you're right about a dreamscape. I don't even recognize any of these star patterns."

"I do. From Ziost."

Nathrrya frowned when that place was mentioned. The planet Ziost was another reclaimed ancient Sith world for Empire. During the war it had grown to the point where it was beginning to overshadow the Sith Citadel on Dromund Kaas.

It was obliterated by Vitiate during the pursuit of the Sith Emperor by both Empire and Republic forces. Nathrrya and her cousin, Casavir, worked together with all of their allies and with the leadership of Grand Master Satele Shan of the Republic and Darth Marr of the Empire. Eventually Tara and some of her mandalorian comrades, her mother's sister Adannah - also a mando - and everyone Casavir knew were on deck and had formed a formidable army to track Vitiate down. Their efforts failed as he prepared to destroy Ziost and everything that was on it… including Tara's mother, Darth Nox.

The memory came back to Tara when she mentioned the stars. She watched the planet become consumed by Vitiate as he ate all of the life that the planet had to offer. Had it not been for her mother Tara, Nathrrya and all of their friends and allies would not have made it off the planet before it was consumed. The younger woman remembered, as much as she didn't want to remember, the pattern of stars that crossed over her eyes when she felt the wave of energy that coursed through the Force as the balance between life and death tipped ever so slightly. Feeling the death of a planet and millions of individual lives had a physical effect of the Force sensitives. Tara, in her still young age, was not in control of her abilities enough to withstand the impact…

She turned her mind away from the thought and back to her current surroundings. Off in the distance Tara saw something making its way slowly towards them from the infinite darkness of space. She stood in her place and tapped Nathrrya with the heel of her boot.

"Nat, check it out. Is that one of ours?"

Standing and brushing the dust from her robes she turned around to see what the younger woman was indicating and she stopped, her eyes squinting. The vessel that was coming towards them certainly looked like an Imperial Harrower-class dreadnought but it was much larger, better armed and had a distinctive towering superstructure that Harrowers lacked. As she took a step forward to try and get a better look she saw Tara sway on the corner of her vision. She turned to her friend.

"Woah, you okay?" Nathrrya reached out to grab Tara but her hand went right through the other woman, the way it would with a ghost. She looked down at her hand and then at her friend. "The kriff is going on?"

"Nat… I don't feel too good…" Tara felt dizzy and sick to her stomach. The stars seemed to jump out at her as she watched them. Nathrrya, by comparison, was beginning to feel the same way.

Before too long, both women had collapsed against one another on the dusty ground that was no longer there.

 _Year 3651 ATC_

Darth Vader stood at his customary position near the front of the Devastator's bridge and gazed at the vast expanse of stars beyond the windows. It was one of the few things he still found soothing in any meaningful way as he recalled the vague memories of having done so as a boy on Tatooine. The irony was not lost on the man who had once been Anakin Skywalker.

His slight meditation was disrupted by the Force suddenly flaring up around him and, under his mask, Vader frowned as he tried to figure out what it meant. Within the churning waves of the unseen entity he felt the two strong and powerful Force signatures. He frowned - these weren't newborns and the signatures were strong and trained. In order to adequately describe the feeling, he would have to say that they just woke up from some kind of dormancy. If he had felt them, then surely the Emperor had as well.

With a toss of his long black cloak Darth Vader turned and stalked off the bridge and made his way to his quarters. He knew his master would contact him soon. Along the way, as he walked, his own apprentice had fallen into step beside him. Starkiller had been an open secret; while the ever present Rule of Two It was in effect, it didn't stop Darth Sidious from taking and training his secret Force sensitive assassin, Mara Jade. Much in the same way, Vader had taken the young man from Kashyyyk and trained him. Neither of the senior Sith masters spoke of their "secrets" - ever.

"I would assume that you sensed the disturbance, apprentice." Vader's deep mechanical voice was quiet and conversational as he addressed his apprentice.

"What could it mean master?" Starkiller asked. He kept his pace even with his Master's and gave him the proper respect. It wasn't the easiest thing, being the young and wild person he tended to be, but years of the constant, belligerent training finally sunk in.

The helmet and mask turned and looked down slightly. "I do not know. They could either be potential allies or potential enemies. Either way, the Emperor will likely order us to find out which and take the proper initiative."

The younger man just nodded in reply.

"What is thy bidding my master?" Vader asked as he knelt before the life sized hologram of the Emperor.

"Rise my friend." Sidious replied in a kindly manner and even went so far as to smile ever so slightly. Vader went on high alert seeing this, taking note that his master was in a much better mood than he normally showed. It was a sign of bad news to come for someone somewhere. But Sidious had other things - more important things - on his mind. "You felt them then?"

"It was difficult not to. It was sudden and dramatic, their…. Awakening."

The Emperor hummed thoughtfully in his own raspy way. "Indeed. It seems Grand Admiral Thrawn's forces in the Unknown Regions have discovered the remains of some form of carbonite storage facility. Thrawn is of the opinion it was actually a prison where the inmates were entombed in carbonite." He paused to allow Vader to take in the information before continuing. "Whatever the case, his men discovered two of the carbonite blocks still functional and those entombed within still alive. Impressive considering Thrawn estimates that the prison is between three and half to four thousand years old."

Something about the news he was getting proved to be elusive to the mind. To find carbonite is one thing, but to find living things encased within after that many eons was a farfetched fantasy for any scientific nut. Experimentation has proven that life support systems would need to be maintained for organic material to survive a stasis that long, and after five years there is significant damage to the nervous system that the subject would die shortly after thawing even with the best of medical attention. It was difficult to believe that two life forms could have survived that long being frozen and with no life support systems even in the vicinity.

"Then the shift in the Force was their release from the carbonite?" Vader asked.

Sidious nodded sagely. "Yes indeed, but it gets better Lord Vader - oh so much better. The two female specimens are both fully trained Sith. Thrawn believes them to be Master and Apprentice." The old man let out a devious cackle. "Go, Vader, to the Unknown Regions and retrieve these two Sith from the Chimaera and bring them before me. If the master refuses, kill her but I want the apprentice alive!"

"Very well," Vader said. "As you wish my Master." He bowed and the hologram of the Emperor faded from view. Starkiller walked over and stood beside his master, his hands behind his back as he stood erect and solemn.

"Are you really going to kill the master?" Starkiller asked.

The only sound for several moments was Vader's mechanical breathing. Starkiller knew it was wise to wait for a response, whether he got one or not, before he spoke again.

"No," the older man finally said. "I am not as short sighted as the Emperor." He turned to face his apprentice. "We do not yet have all of the facts." The masked man walked over to his desk and activated the comm unit. "Captain, locate the Chimaera and plot a course to rendezvous with her, maximum velocity!"

"At once Lord Vader!" the captain replied.

Less than a minute later the two force users felt the Star Destroyer make the jump to hyperspace.


	2. 02 Awakening

There was a saying where if you felt pain then that meant you were not dead. Amid the pain that drummed in her nerves and muscles she felt something hard and cold beneath her, at least Nathrrya thought it was beneath her. Maybe it was behind her? She didn't know. She groaned as she raised an arm up to her face and rubbed at her forehead. There were other sounds and movement around her that she was only partially aware of, but her mind went to only one thing.

"Tara? Where are you? Are you okay?" Nathrrya knew the younger woman was near - she had coughed - so she tried to inch her way towards her friend.

"I'm here… spast! Nat, I can't see!"

Tara felt herself fall and she had been on her hands and knees. When she opened her eyes she was met with a dim, shadowy vision of her surroundings but her head was pounding and her ears were ringing. She felt sick and regretted allowing herself to just fall onto her side as she was about ready to vomit. Slowly she groped around the ground to find Nathrrya and eventually she touched her friend's hand.

"Both of you are experiencing hibernation sickness," a deep male voice said above them. Both girls stiffened, doing their best to awaken their senses but they were still under the effects of their condition. "You have both been frozen in carbonite for an unknown period of time. Your sight and normal functions should return in a couple of hours."

Tara and Nathrrya frowned and moved closer to one another, more for the sake of security rather than in fear. The male's voice didn't sound like he came from Zakuul and neither did it sound like it was Republic. There was an ounce of Imperial to the sound of his voice, but it was slight.

"Who might you be?" Nathrrya asked, her guard up as much as she could have it. She heard the man chuckle amusingly.

"Oh, goodness! Where are my manners? I am Doctor Malavai Lokin, Chief Medical Officer of the Imperial Star Destroyer _Chimera_. Welcome aboard!"

"What…? I've never heard of a Star Destroyer." Tara's confusion was evident on her features even though she nor Nathrrya could see it. It was heard.

"I wasn't aware that the navy had any new classes of warship," Nathrrya said.

"We don't know how long we've been frozen," Tara said, only loud enough for Nathrrya to hear.

"Yeah… that's what worries me." Nathrrya was able to see some shapes among the darkness and slowly she made her way to her feet. She wobbled but gained her composure and helped Tara to her feet. Both girls were still very weak so they held onto each other for stability.

The sound of an opening door and boots on metal greeted their ears. "I am Grand Admiral Thrawn," a commanding voice stated upon entrance. "Your worry is well founded."

"Yeah, no shit," Tara spit. Nathrrya gripped Tara's arm with a warning which quieted the younger woman.

The Grand Admiral studied the two women thoughtfully before continuing, allowing the statement to slide considering the circumstances. "My forces discovered your carbonite blocks in the remains of what looked to be a prison that was located along the Unknown Regions of wild space. The research department are amid their investigation and analysis of the carbonite you were recovered from."

Both women frowned at the news but little by little the effects were wearing away. They still held onto one another regardless. Nathrrya puzzled at the sound of the Grand Admiral's accent as she felt she'd heard it somewhere before.

"Aren't you a Chiss, sir?" she asked. "I recall your accent as it sounds vaguely familiar."

Grand Admiral Thrawn regarded the red head and nodded his head slowly, impressed. "That's most intriguing. You were able to deduce my species by merely listening to my accent? Rather incredible, if I may say."

"Hardly," Tara spoke up. "The Chiss Ascendancy and Sith Empire have been allies for many years. Surely you'd know that, Grand Admiral."

He watched them carefully and glanced over at Dr. Lokin. _Very interesting…_ "You said _Sith_ Empire… may we know who you are?"

"I am Lord Nathrrya Therin, heir to House Palatine and Sith Master. This is K'natara Synge. She's… my apprentice."

All things considered, Tara would have argued this point. But since she couldn't see and was extremely weak, she felt in no position to correct what her friend was saying and only nodded affirmation at the words spoken.

"You're both fully trained Sith?" Dr. Lokin mused aloud. "This just gets curiouser and curiouser. Grand Admiral, sir, considering they are still weak with hibernation sickness and are most likely in need of medical attention, I would like to request to hold off on any other questioning until they are more settled. It's only fair to them and it would beneficial for us. They may cooperate more with us if they were comfortable."

"I second that," Tara said.

Grand Admiral Thrawn considered the request and looked between the three before him. He would rather complete it now and get his report put together sooner rather than later, but sometimes the Doctor wasn't a complete quack. Truthfully, the girls looked dreadful and they didn't seem to be dangerous beyond the fact that he had two potentially dangerous Sith on his hands. _They can't be worse than Vader_ , he thought to himself.

"Very well. Dr. Lokin, you may see to their needs. Get them any medical attention they may require. I'll have some fresh clothes provided and I'll despatch the mess hall to have some food prepared and brought to the medical bay. But, I will have additional security to hand and they are to be under surveillance at all times, do I make myself clear?"

"Yes, sir." Dr. Lokin turned to the girls as the doors opened and some of his medical staff brought gurneys into the room. Carefully Nathrrya and Tara were guided to the beds and wheeled out of the room they were in and taken to the medical bay.

* * *

Several hours later, after bathing, food and much needed rest, Nathrrya and Tara had both recovered enough of their strength and composure that they felt human again. While their vision was still blurry from the after effects of the carbonite imprisonment they were able to distinguish their surroundings and read with relative ease. Dr. Lokin and his staff came in and out of the medical room - which was under close watch by the soldiers outside - to check on their vitals and see that both women were stable.

"This is really weird, Nat," Tara said after the door closed again. "The Chiss didn't even seem to know who you are when you announced your name and title. Palatine is the most well-known house in the Sith Empire and considering your mother is the governor of Axxila I'm surprised no one has stated they would contact her." She lifted the shoulder of the shirt she wore again. "Spast, this is worse than the Jedi robes. At least they fit me."

Nathrrya contemplated the sequence of events from when they first woke up. Tara made a point about the Grand Admiral not seeming to recognize her, and this was a strange occurrence. It led her to believe that something else was going on but the key point that needed to be discovered was exactly _how long_ they were imprisoned.

"I don't know about you, Nat, but I have a daughter and a husband to find out if they are okay or not."

"I'm the same way, Tara. I don't want to think about the tizzy your father is most likely in."

Nathrrya was going to say something else but the doors opened again and this time Grand Admiral Thrawn entered with Dr. Lokin close behind. The look on the Chiss' face seemed puzzled and grave, and the look was not lost on either Sith woman. Nathrrya turned to face the two men and Tara decided to remain sitting on the cot that was there. She was still battling the sleeve that kept falling down her slender shoulder.

"There is no easy way to tell you this, so I'll just say it." The Grand Admiral took a breath as he looked at both women. "If the report from the archaeological team is correct, and I have little doubt that it's not, then the dating on the carbonite blocks trace back several millennia. You two have been entombed for at least four thousand years."

The silence following the announcement was deafening while Nathrrya and Tara processed the information. They struggled with it, both women looking back and forth between the Grand Admiral, the doctor and each other.

"Nat…"

"That's impossible!" Nathrrya's head began to spin and she had to put pressure on her temples to relax the confusion. "Four thousand years in carbonite?"

"We should be dead!" Tara blurted, her eyes wide. "We should be dead! How are we not dead?"

"Tara, calm down!" Nathrrya turned her attention back to the Chiss, her eyes determined, her face solid. She wasn't having a good time of this and neither was Tara and for good reason. If that was true, then…

"Tara, what do you sense?" Nathrrya looked over at her friend and caught her glance. Tara wasn't sure what Nathrrya was asking until it dawned on her. The younger woman closed her eyes, her back straightened up as he sat and her breathing smoothed out. Her face soon turned into a frown.

"Darkness," she finally said. "Overwhelming darkness." She opened her eyes and stood up to take place beside the red head. "Nat, the Force is completely out of balance. What the spast happened to cause this?"

Nathrrya studied her friend's eyes for a moment. "I think the Living Force kept us alive for something. It's the only explanation."

"But, that's not how the Force works," Tara countered. "Why would it do that?"

Grand Admiral Thrawn listened to their conversation intently. "I must inform the Galactic Emperor of your existence. He most likely already knows of your awakening." After a moment his com beeped and incoming message. "Yes, Captain?"

" _I apologize for the interruption, Sir, but the Emperor is live on Holocom. He wants a status report on the investigation into the disturbance he felt."_ Captain Pellaeon's voice came cracked through the com but it was easy to hear.

"Yes, tell him I'll be there shortly with news that may actually put him in a good mood for once. Don't tell him I said that."

" _Yes, Sir."_ Pallaeon cut the connection.

Thrawn returned his attention to the two women and bowed to them out of courtesy, rather than respect. "I'm sorry to leave in such a hurry but the Emperor isn't someone you keep waiting." He looked towards Dr. Lokin. "Take good care of them. I'm keeping everything in place for security but if they need anything, please provide. I'd suspect that once I give him the news the Emperor will want to send Lord Vader to collect our guests to take them to the Imperial Centre." He turned and left the Doctor with the girls.

"What the spast kind of name is that?" Tara asked appalled. The doctor chuckled in amusement.

"I'm inclined to agree with you, but that's the designation of Coruscant now."

"Wait, _Coruscant_?" Nathrrya shook her head in disbelief. "No way, that's… but that's the capital planet of the Republic!"

"Oh dear…" Dr. Lokin wasn't sure what else to say or do. On the request of the red head he left them alone in the med bay.

Nathrrya was pacing while Tara just sat in stunned silence. What the kriff happened in the time that they were asleep?


	3. 03 Time Displaced

Tara and Nathrrya were alone in the silence of the medbay but their minds were far from quiet. Only a few short minutes ago they were told they had somehow survived a four thousand-year stint in carbonite. While the scientists were trying to figure it out the girls knew that somehow the Force had kept them alive. They just didn't know why.

After an additional fifteen minutes of silence Tara broke it. "So, are you going to say it or am I?"

"Say what, Tara?" Nathrrya was confused.

"You know what."

Oh… right. "I'm… not sure I want to just yet." Nathrrya took a deep breath and looked out of the only window in the room as the vast expanse of space before her. It looked so much bigger and so much more empty than it did on the bridge of Marr's ship. It's the same galaxy, but it's not is it? She thought.

Nathrrya needed to concentrate on something else. "We need a plan," she said, turning to Tara. "We're obviously in a new galaxy so we need to learn the rules. And part of it, unless we wanna be kriffed, is we need to re-establish ourselves."

"Nat, are you serious?" Finally Tara stood from her cot and walked up to the other woman. "We're kriffed either way. We don't have any weapons, we have no belongings, nothing to our names but our names and we'll be lucky if they mean anything now. Think about it - four thousand years. If it was four hundred I can see us getting away with it. But, spast… our history might not exist anymore."

She was right and Nathrrya knew it. She closed her eyes and opened her mind to the Force and felt around to see what was actually there. Just like Tara had explained earlier there was an overwhelming sense of darkness and a complete imbalance in the Force. There was no denying it at this point and the feeling created an uneasy agitation within her. Nathrrya wanted to try and make some sense of it so she did what she thought would be best to do at the time: She shrank her own Force signature to almost nothing so she could snoop around.

Tara shuddered a little when she felt it. Their history together was enough to remind Tara of the tactics and strategies that Nathrrya would incorporate into any investigation. The stars knew that Nathrrya was good at what she did and she had the training and experience needed in order to do whatever she wanted… within reason. Tara was powerful for her age and she was told it was due to the circumstances of her birth and who her mother had been. Tara had been bitter about it - she still is - but at this point her mother wasn't a mom and never was. As for what Nathrrya was doing, Tara was sure she could do it as well but she had no interest in hiding her presence. He was never one for stealth even though her mother had been the best assassin the Sith Empire ever had.

"What did you find?" she asked.

Nathrrya sat on the cot next to Tara and ungracefully fel backwards, the action making her red hair sprawl into a halo around her head on the mattress. What did she find? A very messed up situation.

"This so-called Emperor wasn't encouraging," she mumbled. "I've known better Sith in our time but he seems very scared and erratic. He probably sensed me but couldn't tell since I'm hiding my signature. I would like it if you could avoid being around him, though. The amount of Dark Side energy surrounding him could be enough to tip you over the edge again."

That made Tara stop and take a deep, deep breath at what Nathrrya said. Only once had she dipped so far into the Dark Side that she had almost lost her way back. Tara and Nathrrya knew that Tara would need some kind of trigger to begin her decent and while Tara had trained and meditated for weeks to learn to control this, it was still there and the button could be pushed. It would be harder to push now than it was in the beginning. Tara had a rule to be her own keeper and make her own decisions but she would listen to Nathrrya on this one.

"What else?" she pressed. "There had to be more."

"There was another signature near the Emperor. Not sure it's an apprentice or someone who's trying to be Sith but it's held back - suppressed - and it's clear that the Emperor is holding it back. There is potential there and it might be an ally if we play our cards right.

"There was another one. It's moving quickly so this has to be this Vader who's coming to pay us a visit. There is another signature with him, much less suppressed that the former I told you about. Possibly another apprentice. There is a lot of pain there on first sensation but I didn't want to push too hard yet."

Tara turned to Nathrrya and looked at her. "Any Jedi?"

The redhead frowned. Nathrrya had scoured the galaxy and found almost no trace of anything so much as resembling a Jedi in the fullest sense. She suspected she may have found traces of remaining Jedi, or potential Jedi in the case of two younger beings. This worried her - how had the Jedi been reduced to almost nothing.

"I don't like your silence," Tara said, also frowning. She didn't push it any further since the silence gave her the answer, as unpalatable as it was. Tara was Sith to the bone, but she'd worked with a number of noble Jedi for the same cause when the battle on Yavin occurred in their attempt to end Vitiate's tyranny. She grew to respect them. "Well, you're going to meet the Emperor then?"

"Yeah. Not much of a choice, really. Until we know what we're dealing with we need to lay low and learn the rules. I'll get a better gauge of this Emperor when I meet him. Then I'll know what we need to do."

* * *

Once the vessel had landed in the docking bay, Darth Vader strode down the ramp of his personal Lambda-class shuttle with his apprentice, Starkiller, right behind him. Both men were greeted by Grand Admiral Thrawn and Captain Gilad Pellaeon, both of them saluting Vader as he approached the pair.

"Ah, Lord Vader. I suspected that the Emperor would send you personally. Our guests are in Medbay One."

"Medbay, Grand Admiral?" Vader looked at the Chiss through the visor of his helmet and observed the alien's rather relaxed facial tone.

"Yes, my Lord," Captain Pellaeon chimed in. "Both women are still recovering from prolonged hibernation sickness. Our Chief Medical Officer thought it best that they recover in the comfort of the medbay rather than the confines of a holding cell. He also thought it would garner more cooperation from them as well."

Vader turned his attention back to Thrawn. "And has this tactic done as much?"

"They've not been hostile," Thrawn said, moving to clasp his hands behind his back formally. "From what I have been able to observe of them since their awakening I agree with the decision that the medbay was a more preferable location for them - under strict supervision."

There was a moment of consideration when Starkiller stepped forward from behind his master. "There seems to be more to what you want to say, Grand Admiral. Care to share?" Both Starkiller and Vader new that any impression the Chiss had of others was usually more accurate than not.

"Indeed. When their carbonite blocks were brought aboard I had the chance to study their forms and that of what they were wearing. Once they were released I had their garments and other personal items cleaned and reviewed." As the group exited the hanger bay Thrawn went into more detail. "The older woman wore finely tailored robes that bore an ornate seal on the left breast. I believe it to be some insignia of rank or house affiliation. I have someone on the records to locate the meaning in the records."

"I heard there were weapons on their persons?"

"Yes," Thrawn confirmed. "She was found with both the hilt of a lightsaber - single-handed - as well as a blaster pistol."

Vader stopped and turned towards the Grand Admiral. "A blaster pistol? That's unusual for a Force user. I've never heard of one openly carrying one along with a lightsaber."

"It was also custom built," Thrawn added. "Very sophisticated, very ornate. It is uncertain on if it was merely decoration or if it was active and usable. My team is working on it now." Vader considered this for a moment.

"What of the second woman?"

"Significantly younger than her companion and base DNA testing shows no familial connections, just to prove their claims of being master and apprentice. This one had more practical combat armor but it was no less meticulously crafted to her personal needs and size. She, too, had a lightsaber that is double-bladed."

Lord Vader took all of the information in before nodding. Thrawn was very specific in his research and never overlooked a detail. "The Emperor is more interested in the younger woman. What more can you tell me from your preliminary checks on her?"

"She is approximately one-point-seven meters tall and fifty-seven kilograms. Her muscle tone is balanced with her average height and weight and the muscles in her arms and legs indicate strength and agility.

"She is also very quick to temper," Thrawn included, recalling the verbal brandings the red head would have to inflict on the brunette now and again. "The older woman has control of her and she listens to the redhead more than anyone else."

"Very well, Grand Admiral. I believe I shall go and meet them now. They are to be taken before the Emperor on Coruscant."

"A word of warning, Lord Vader," Captain Pelleaon said. "If I were you I would play nice. The girls recently learned of how long they had been frozen. They are attempting to acclimate still."

Starkiller looked at his master. Vader was never one to take advice from anyone else but from the way Vader didn't react to the warning, perhaps his master was considering it.

"Thank you, Captain."

* * *

"Considering you can't feel any Jedi, or small amounts of Jedi, it makes me wonder if there is even any kind of Republic anymore."

Nathrrya was still lying on the cot as Tara got up to walk around. She never liked being inactive and when her meditation bothered her she went and ran around wherever she happened to be at the time. Having been with her husband as long as she had she learned that inactivity was a leech on your existence. But she was trapped in a medbay with armed guards outside. Nathrrya discouraged her from causing trouble so she settled herself with pacing the room and looking out of the window every time she passed by it.

"Damn good question," Nathrrya said, her eyes closed. She was going to say something more but she didn't want to.

"Spast, couldn't they give us something that actually fits? This makes me look thin and malnourished."

"Because you are thin and malnourished, Tara."

"Am not. I'm perfect."

Nathrrya chuckled but the sound was choked silent when she felt a shift. She sat up immediately and even Tara turned towards the door. "We've got company."

The door opened and Dr. Lokin came in with a couple of containers. He put them down on the nearby medical table and patted the top. "Here you go, ladies. Fresh from the cleaners. Everything here was in surprisingly good condition except for any of the metal or mechanical properties. They disintegrated rapidly as soon as they came out of the carbonite."

"What about our lightsabers?" Tara asked, coming to grab the container with her name on it. She opened the lid and peered inside and her heart sank. "Oh…" She reached in and pulled out a clear bag with the remnants of what would have been her lightsaber hilt. It was destroyed beyond repair. "This will take weeks to rebuild…"

"We'll put that on our to-do list, right after we find out what the hell is going on.'" Nathrrya muttered as she pulled out the bag with her own weapon. Within the bag was another one with the remains of the emblem of her house crest. "Spast…"

"Until you're cleared you won't be given any weapons." Grand Admiral Thrawn came back into the medical room and addressed the two women with a slight bow. "Lord Vader and his apprentice are here to see you and he isn't one to be kept waiting. He answers directly to the Emperor."

"A lightsaber is more than just a weapon, Admiral." Nathrrya said looking the Chiss in the eyes. "A Force user is never truly weaponless." Chew on that, she thought with dark amusement. Nathrrya thought it prudent to remind the man that while they lacked their weapons of choice they were anything but defenseless.

"We'll see him when we're ready," Tara snapped. For whatever reason the Grand Admiral rubbed her the wrong way, and not just because he was Chiss. Her sister worked with the Chiss enough to have contacts all over the galaxy and it was a regular thing. But this Chiss… Tara wasn't having it.

"Calm yourself, Tara. It's not like we're in a position to decline anyway." Well they could but there was little point.

"This is very true."

All parties in the room turned towards the door where a large, black-clad figure stood wearing a mask. The man was bulky and the mechanical suit he wore covered him from head to toe. Just behind him was a younger man with tanned skin, dark eyes and dark hair cut very close to his scalp. He wasn't so much stocky as he was well fit physically. Both Tara and Nathrrya could feel his power in the Force, but it was suppressed to a degree.

The larger figure, very obviously this Vader the Grand Admiral had mentioned, was shrouded in Dark Side energy and it was masking an oppressive level of pain and suffering. Without thinking about it Nathrrya took a protective step towards Tara when she saw the younger woman shiver from the energy radiating from the man. Tara's quiet, but deep, breath comforted Nathrrya knowing she was trying to maintain her stability.

"I'm warning you right now, reduce your Force energy. I will not allow that near my apprentice in her current state." When nothing happened Nathrrya growled, tightened her fists and flashed her yellow Sith eyes. The man in the mask only regarded her from behind his visor.

"I am Darth Vader," he said, his deep mechanical voice almost echoing in the room. "This is my apprentice, Starkiller. My master was correct in his estimations of your power in the Force and I can sense the strength in your apprentice as well. I am to bring you both before him. You will either come willingly or you will taken by force."

"Back off buckethead!" Tara hissed. "We aren't going anywhere until we get some kriffing answers!"

"Watch your tone, delinquent. You're addressing a Sith master!"

"Shut up Sparklestar, I wasn't talking to you!"

"Enough Tara!" Nathrrya turned to the younger woman with her eyes blazing and gave her apprentice a small Force push. Tara's body went heavy and she fell back against the wall briefly until she regained her control over her temper. Nathrrya flashed a smirk at her apprentice before turning back around.

"I apologize for my apprentice," she said. "But she does make a valid point, even if it was improperly communicated. You most likely know our circumstances but we are not going anywhere and we will not be presented to anyone until we get some more information."

"We merely wish to speak to you," Thrawn said, maintaining his matter-of-fact calmness. "There is much we don't know and surely more you don't. We can assist each other."

"Thank you, Grand Admiral, but what you say is different from what he said. While I trust you more than I can him it doesn't change the fact that we are not moving from thi location and you all can leave us alone."

"You are in no position to make any such demands," Vader said. "You are within the boundaries of the Empire and thus are subject to its laws, as is your apprentice through association. As you both are of considerable Force sensitivity I am to bring you both before our Emperor."

Lord Vader sensed a shift in the Force signature of the red headed woman. Around him there was a blast of energy which caused Starkiller, the Grand Admiral and Doctor Lokin to all go flying and be pinned against the walls of the medbay. The thick glass of the kolto tank within the room began to show the beginnings of spider web fractures. Vader's own strength in the Force counteracted that of Nathrrya's attack and was able to remain standing where he was. Only his cloak moved while the other three were pinned to the wall. Nathrrya took several threatening steps towards Lord Vader, her eyes now solidly yellow, but the larger man did not move or sway.

"Listen, my apprentice and I have been released from a frozen prison after four thousand years. If you haven't figured it out, we are in a very bad mood. The last thing you want to do is push either of us around, because trust me, we can kick your ass royally one-on-one and weaponless. Imagine what we could do to you if we worked together. Bottom line, you will regret it." After a moment staring into the blank eyes of Lord Vader's mask she finally backed away and released her hold on the other three souls in the room. The Grand Admiral and doctor lost their balance and had a bout of vertigo while Starkiller was on his feet and ready to tackle the woman head on. He was ready to teach her a lesson.

Vader reached out an arm to stop his apprentice's progression towards the other two. You will be defeated, apprentice, Vader said. She is much too strong for you. Witness what just occurred and stand down. You are no use to me dead. Starkiller looked up at the mask of his master and frowned, but he eventually backed off.

The interaction was familiar to Nathrrya as she will oftentimes engage in the same form of mental communication with Tara. Eventually Starkiller backed away. While his master and the redhead continued their debate he allowed his eyes to wander over to the dark haired woman behind the other. He watched her for a while, observing the way she stood, the way she shifted from one foot to another as she observed her own master before her gaze eventually moved and met his.

Despite his quick disposition Tara was surprised by the amount of control the man had that she found within his eyes. As she nudged the edge of his Force signature with her own she felt him pull back. She cocked her head ever so slightly and pushed a little more but this time he hit back, causing her to withdraw. He looked uncomfortable and a little perturbed by her actions but it seemed to dawn on him that she wasn't threatening.

"Okay, listen," Nathrrya finally said. "I'll come and see your Emperor but my apprentice stays behind. That's the final offer, so take it or leave it."

Nathrrya stood her ground and didn't relent as Vader considered the woman through the visor of his mask. Eventually he would have to relent - he saw the power the red head had and he'd yet to see the strength of the younger brunette. Should both of them decide to attack the ensuing battle would be devastating to the ship and would be more of a waste of time than anything else.

"Very well. Come, Starkiller."

The two women watched as Darth Vader and his apprentice left the medical room followed closely by Dr. Lokin. Grand Admiral Thrawn stayed behind briefly as if he was going to say something but thought better of it. The look on the Chiss' face wasn't lost on Nathrrya or Tara. Thrawn turned and eventually followed the other men out of the room. Just before the door closed, Nathrrya caught the Admiral speaking to his navigator over their com system to make course for the Imperial Center.

Nathrrya looked at Tara. "I guess we're going to Coruscant."


	4. 04 Imperial What Now?

_Author's Note: As a reminder, this is written by an American and a New Zealander. Color vs. Colour. With that said, please forgive any inconsistencies of this nature and enjoy the chapter!_

* * *

Nathrrya looked back at the ship she and Vader had departed from as they made their way towards the old Jedi Temple. She shivered, and not because she was cold. It had dawned more thoroughly on her that she was walking on Coruscant and now entering the Jedi Temple… which was now housing the Imperial Palace. As she walked through the halls she could still feel the echoes of the fallen Jedi Order. It made her sick to her stomach to think about and to feel the remnants of the pain and anger that resided in the walls. She glanced to her side at the behemoth walking beside her, the only other sound in the halls coming from his mechanical breathing. It was eerie as it mingled with the echoes of their boots on the stone floor.

The Force allowed her to get flashes of past memories if it were strong enough in any one location. Considering what had happened within these very walls there were bits and pieces of a strapping young man – bold and adventurous and a little prideful. Nathrrya was clever enough to connect the dots. She was looking at bits and pieces of Vader's former life before he was put into the support suit. She was looking at what remained of a fallen Jedi Knight going by the blue blade he'd once used. Even with these little snippets the Force had shown her there was still a deeper mystery under that suit and Nathrrya intended to solve it, one way or another.

They turned a corner and Vader's cloak swished in the air, cutting through it in such a way that made Nathrrya frown. She put more attention on his suit as they walked, her mind churning and thinking. The suit he wore was very similar to others in her own time. The only difference was that they were built better, with much better equipment. The cyborgs she knew took great pride in their suits and kept them as impeccable as possible – it's what kept them alive. The suit Vader had was not made by him, or for him. It was of poor quality and the little pain she sensed from the man under the black armour was enough for her to figure that the Emperor had it made, and to keep Vader weak. Vitiate wasn't even that bad of an emperor, unless you counted his plan to consume the galaxy... Her emperor welcomed the challenge. Palpatine doesn't.

She and Tara could, and would, change that. Vader had a good head on his shoulders and he proved that to her and Tara. Nathrrya was always willing to give someone a chance, and Vader seemed to have some small amount of regret on his past actions and he hid it well. Just seeing him move through the Temple with her showed as much but that would be all she'd get from the man without him being careful about it. The emperor would have to be dealt with at some point down the road. It may be years down the line but Nathrrya was patient and would wait for the right moment. Tara on the other hand…

Nathrrya had to get through the meeting with Palpatine, Galactic Emperor. She let out a quiet snort of dissertation – _Self-absorbed much?_ she thought.

Tara glared at Nathrrya's back as she watched the redhead follow Darth Vader off their shuttle to meet with the Emperor. Had it not been for the nagging presence of Starkiller Tara would have actually been okay with staying as far away from Coruscant as she possibly could. The one and only time she had ever came to this planet was to follow up on an attack that led her to Tython, the home world of the Jedi Order.

She looked over at Starkiller, who was just as grumpy being on babysitting detail, and then back out the viewing port to the planet. She opened her senses to the Force and looked at the surface. It was red, and the Dark Side was quite prominent on it than it had been when she was last there. She frowned. "That's so not right…"

Outwardly, Starkiller may have been projecting his disdain but the truth of the matter was that he was left with a Force-strong beautiful woman. It wasn't all bad in his books. Both Sith women were intriguing to him in different ways and for different reasons. The redhead, Darth Avarice, stood up to Lord Vader and didn't back down on anything. She refused to be bullied by him and made it known and that alone was impressive to Starkiller. He'd never seen anyone have as much guts to do such a thing and when Avarice was only a head shorter it was that much more impressive.

During the trip to the Imperial Centre both women had flatly refused to call it that and proceeded to call it Coruscant, despite the number of times he and Vader called it the former. It was damn near infuriating to him and Starkiller could only imagine how his master was taking it. The trip had become a battle of wills between all four of them and eventually the two more senior Sith finally hit some kind of understanding between them. For Starkiller and Tara, not so much.

When it came to Tara, though, she was a mystery wrapped in an enigma to the younger man. Avarice's apprentice was bold and beautiful and that mystery was not something Starkiller was in a hurry to figure out. He had to be honest that he wasn't attracted to the brunette any more than he was actually interested in learning her ways in the Force, and why she does what she does – whatever that may be. Starkiller was aware of Juno's growing affections towards him, and his pilot was attractive and strong as well in her own way. To say he wasn't interested in the blond would be a lie. And because of that he wasn't going to risk this with her.

But having a Force sensitive woman, good looking, and near his own age in his vicinity? This was a plus. He'd be happy to learn anything he could about Tara and Avarice.

"What do you mean?" he asked her, curious. He looked over at her and saw that she was sitting on the chair in the shuttle with her knees up to her chest. She was staring out at the planet with an obviously mal-contented frown on her features. He made the quick notation on how… no. He wasn't going there.

Tara was trying to ignore him but it wasn't working. All she could do was stare at the redness that the planet was emanating. She finally gave in. She had no reason to be mean or rude to Starkiller and the least she could do was try to be sociable. That didn't mean she had to like it.

"Your so-called Imperial Centre never used to be like this," she said. "I've only ever been here once and I was the commander of ten troops assigned to level the Temple and right after we were sent to Tython to do the same with their home world." She pointed out the window. "The Dark Side has permeated this planet almost to its core. It's sickening to see."

Starkiller cocked his head a little as he processed the information. "Interesting. I've… never known it to be any different." Wait a moment. "Tython? As in the ancient Jedi planet where they trained and—"

"The very one."

He had trouble believing this. That was well over three thousand years ago in the records and there was barely anything left on it. The brunette was more and more confusing and interesting. He turned his attention to the window and furrowed his brow.

"Do you think it would change if the Emperor… died suddenly?" He said it idly, not wanting to come across as anything other than thoughtful about the theory. He wanted to see her reaction. And because it was hypothetical at best he didn't even know if the girl would say anything in response. Like he thought, Tara didn't say anything but only turned her head to look at him for a very long, drawn-out moment before she turned her chair completely in the opposite direction, effectively turning her back to him.

She turned back around after a moment. She had to steel herself for what she was about to day because the stupidity of his question was too much for her. Tara didn't know whether she wanted to hit the guy or laugh at him.

"Vader's not training you very well if you asked such a thing," she said, her voice a little bitter and almost malicious. "The permeation of the Dark Side is far too deep to just 'go away' when the source is dead. It's been around a long time and from what little I know, and since that was a Jedi temple, it's near impossible for them to have not sensed it. It'll take decades for the taint to lift itself, if it will at all."

She raised an eyebrow then. "You've never met the emperor, have you?"

Starkiller cocked his head and smiled thinly. "Never. I'm technically a secret, so the shriveled prune doesn't know – or shouldn't know – that I even exist. If I ever met him, then I wouldn't be a secret, now would I?"

"How the hell does that make sense?" Tara asked, rolling her eyes. "He shouldn't know about you?"

"Don't misunderstand me because I'm pretty sure he knows about me but isn't saying anything. It's much the same with Lord Vader knowing about the emperor's Force-sensitive assassins. He calls them the Hands…"

Tara sobered quickly at the mention of the Hand. She shuddered visibly at the recollection of her and Nathrrya's encounter with a few of them back in her own time. Chances are the current Hand couldn't be as bad as they were then. She made a mental note to speak to Nathrrya about this when they connected up again.

"… and I've only ever managed to identify a red head… okay, maybe more orange… named Mara Jade." Starkiller swiveled in the chair a bit in thought. "She's probably about your age."

Tara scoffed. "I doubt it, Sparklestar. I'm a little older than you think."

Starkiller's feathers were ruffled and Tara could see it. He grit his teeth and cracked his neck joints. "Anyway – Vader knows there are others since he keeps track of them. He's fairly certain that there are less than ten."

"There's twelve," Tara said. "And that's assuming your emperor kept it the same as the ages passed. If not, then it's likely there are far less."

"Whatever. As far as I'm concerned as long as Vader and Palpatine don't openly acknowledge the secrets of the other then we have business as usual." Starkiller gave Tara an apprising glance that made her frown. "The arrival of you and your master is going to change some things. I have no idea how, but I do know that the emperor will want control of the two of you."

"Fat chance of that!"

"Well, yeah. People he can't control scare him. Seeing what your master did to stand up to mine is proof enough of that. It's going to be interesting."


End file.
